Scores of American visitors are expected to descend on St George’s to mark the 240th anniversary of the Bermuda Gunpowder Plot this year.

Members of Sons and Daughters of the American Revolution have held talks with people on the Island and have confirmed plans to travel here in August.

Members from the two patriotic organisations, who are descendants of people who helped America to achieve independence, will attend a series of events during their stay in Bermuda, including a historic re-enactment of the gunpowder barrels being rolled down to Tobacco Bay and taken out to waiting American ships.

Mayor Garth Rothwell described the group’s visit as “a great example of cultural tourism” and he said he hoped that the Gunpowder re-enactment could become a permanent fixture on the St George’s calender.

“This is great news for the town,” said Mr Rothwell. “The re-enactment will take place on August 15 down at Tobacco Bay and we have high hopes that this will be a very well attended event.

“As well as the families from the Sons and Daughters of the American Revolution, we hope that locals will also come down and mark this very significant event in our history. The more we can develop our historic links with the US, the more people we can attract to Bermuda and St George’s.

“This event has great potential and we would very much like to make it an annual event.”

Bermuda’s so called “Gunpowder Plot” involved a group of residents defying British rule and providing Americans with more than 100 barrels of gunpowder to fight the British.

On August 14, 1775, a party of armed Bermudians led by Colonel Henry Tucker overpowered a single militia guard and scaled the high walls of the Powder Magazine in St George’s. They then proceeded to steal the British Army’s entire supply of 100 barrels of gunpowder from Powder Magazine.

They rolled the gunpowder down the hill to the shores of Tobacco Bay, where a pre-arranged group of locally made cedar dinghies took the precious cargo out beyond the reef to waiting American sloops.

The American ships, led by the Lady Catherine, reached Charleston safely and deposited the powder with Captain John Cowper of North Carolina, Colonel Henry Tucker’s agent in Charleston. The powder was reportedly later used to good effect at Fort Moultrie.

Rick Spurling, president of the St David’s Island Historical Society, has been tasked with helping to organise the re-enactment.

Mr Spurling told The Royal Gazette: “This will be the first time to my knowledge that a re-enactment of the events of 240 years ago will take place in Bermuda.

“We are still in the very early stages but we hope to enlist around 20 actors to take part in the re-enactment at Tobacco Bay.

“It obviously will not be anything like the scale of the original event as we are not going to be able to get 100 barrels of gunpowder.

“But the purpose will be to create a picture or a snapshot of the events that transpired on August 14, 1775.

“We also hope that one of the actors will provide a running commentary of what is going on to provide an insight into this event for the people that attend.”